Angelfish tank mates

Angelfish are cichlids: calm most of the time, but an adult eats any fish that fits in its mouth. Their tank mates need to be too big to swallow and too calm to nip their long fins.

Each species is checked against angelfish both ways: mouth size, fin nipping, temperament, territory, water overlap and keeper reports.

Good tank mates

Panda corydoras
Corydoras panda
Fits
Friendly armoured catfish that sift the sand in groups; need soft substrate and a group of six or more.
1.6 in · 17+ gal · 72–77°F · pH 6–7.2
Blood parrot cichlid
hybrid
Fits
A man-made hybrid cichlid with a round body and a beak-like mouth that barely closes; usually gentle and rarely able to swallow tank mates.
7.9 in · 36+ gal · 72–82°F · pH 6.5–8
Blue dolphin cichlid
Cyrtocara moorii
Fits
A sky-blue Malawi cichlid with a fatty forehead hump; calm and sociable over open sand, but no match for boisterous mbuna.
9.8 in · 80+ gal · 77–81°F · pH 8–8.5
Bristlenose pleco
Ancistrus cf. cirrhosus
Fits
The go-to glass cleaner: a compact 5-inch pleco with bushy whiskers on the males that needs a cave and vegetables, not just algae.
4.9 in · 17+ gal · 70–79°F · pH 5.5–7.5
Bronze cory
Corydoras aeneus
Fits
The most widely kept cory: a tough bronze-green or albino catfish that shoals along the bottom and handles a broad range of water.
3 in · 23+ gal · 70–81°F · pH 6–8
Clown loach
Chromobotia macracanthus
Fits
A bold orange-and-black loach that lives 20 years and grows over a foot long, so a proper group needs a 6-foot tank.
15.7 in · 202+ gal · 75–86°F · pH 5–7
Common pleco
Pterygoplichthys pardalis
Fits
The classic store 'algae eater' that grows to nearly two feet, fouls the water and eats less algae with age; a fish for very large tanks only.
22.8 in · 203+ gal · 77–82°F · pH 7–7.5
Demasoni
Chindongo demasoni (syn. Pseudotropheus demasoni)
Fits
A small blue-and-black striped mbuna with outsized aggression; it attacks much larger fish and is kept only in large, crowded groups.
3 in · 64+ gal · 75–82°F · pH 8.2–8.5
Discus
Symphysodon aequifasciatus (species complex)
Fits
The 'king of the aquarium': a disc-shaped Amazon cichlid in countless bred colours that needs warm, soft, very clean water.
5.5 in · 80+ gal · 79–86°F · pH 5–7
Dwarf gourami
Trichogaster lalius
Fits
A bright little gourami popular with beginners; one male per tank, no bettas, and buy carefully, as imported fish often carry an incurable iridovirus.
3 in · 18+ gal · 72–81°F · pH 6–7.5
Fairy cichlid
Neolamprologus brichardi
Fits
A graceful Tanganyika cichlid with a lyre tail; one pair grows into a family colony that guards its rocks year-round.
3.5 in · 34+ gal · 73–79°F · pH 8–9
Firemouth cichlid
Thorichthys meeki
Fits
A Central American cichlid with a fiery red throat it flares when threatened; fairly calm for a cichlid but territorial when breeding.
4.7 in · 34+ gal · 75–82°F · pH 6.5–8.5
Golden mbuna
Melanochromis auratus
Fits
A striped gold mbuna and one of the most aggressive Malawi cichlids; it kills rival males, so plan a crowded harem tank of 55 gallons or more.
4.3 in · 64+ gal · 75–82°F · pH 7.6–8.8
Jewel cichlid
Rubricatochromis bimaculatus (syn. Hemichromis bimaculatus)
Fits
A blazing red West African cichlid that holds its territory year-round and turns extremely aggressive when spawning; best kept as a pair on its own.
5.9 in · 34+ gal · 72–82°F · pH 6–7.8
Leopard sailfin pleco
Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps
Fits
A tall-finned pleco with a brocade pattern that is sold at 2 inches and grows to about 20, needing a very large tank and heavy filtration.
19.7 in · 187+ gal · 77–86°F · pH 5–7
Peacock cichlid
Aulonocara jacobfreibergi
Fits
The peacocks of Lake Malawi: brilliant males, grey females, calmer than mbuna and gentle with plants, but they need fine sand to feed.
6.7 in · 135+ gal · 77–84°F · pH 7.5–9
Pearl gourami
Trichopodus leerii
Fits
One of the calmest and most beautiful gouramis, covered in pearly spots; ideal for a quiet planted tank with floating plants.
4.7 in · 26+ gal · 75–86°F · pH 5.5–8
Peppered cory
Corydoras paleatus
Fits
One of the hardiest corys: a mottled catfish that sifts sand in a group of six and prefers slightly cooler water.
2.8 in · 22+ gal · 72–79°F · pH 6–7
Rainbow shark
Epalzeorhynchos frenatum
Fits
An olive 'shark' with red fins, most often sold in its albino form; territorial toward lookalike bottom fish and best kept alone.
5.9 in · 76+ gal · 75–79°F · pH 6.5–8
Red-tailed black shark
Epalzeorhynchos bicolor
Fits
A velvet-black 'shark' with a red tail; beautiful but territorial, chasing lookalike bottom fish and its own kind as it ages.
4.9 in · 76+ gal · 72–79°F · pH 6.5–7.5
Rosy barb
Pethia conchonius
Fits
A large, hardy barb whose males turn bright pink-red when breeding; suits cooler tanks that run without a heater.
3.9 in · 28+ gal · 64–72°F · pH 6–8
Severum
Heros severus / Heros efasciatus
Fits
A calm, large South American cichlid often kept with angelfish and catfish; eats soft plants and any fish that fits in its mouth.
7.9 in · 76+ gal · 72–84°F · pH 5.5–6.5
Siamese algae eater
Crossocheilus oblongus
Fits
A slim silver fish with a black stripe and one of the few that eats black beard algae; grows to about 6 inches and loves to jump.
5.9 in · 95+ gal · 75–79°F · pH 6.5–8
Swordtail
Xiphophorus hellerii
Fits
A large, very active livebearer whose males carry a sword-shaped tail; it needs a long tank, a lid and hard water.
6.3 in · 34+ gal · 72–82°F · pH 7–8

And 42 more in the species catalog.

Risky

And 17 more in the species catalog.

Avoid

And 42 more in the species catalog.

Questions

Can angelfish live with neon tetras?

Young angelfish can, but an adult angelfish eats neons. Pick larger tetras such as black skirts or rummynoses.

Every tank is different. Set yours up once (size, water, who already lives there) and each species is checked against it.

Related guides